How do you say to understand in spanish?

Answer 1

First, it's important to distinguish the context of the words "understand it". The word would be conjugated very differently depending upon, for instance, to whom you are speaking, whether you are asking or stating or commanding, and also what colloquial meaning you might have in mind for the phrase.

For instance, in English, colloquial meaning of "understand it" varies:

You could say "do you understand it?" as in, "do you comprehend the concept?" and in Spanish, that would be the verb "comprender" conjugated fully as "tu lo comprendes?" (with an upside-down question mark before the sentence and an acute diacritical mark over the "u" in "tu" which my keyboard won't allow me to type for you).

If you wanted to say "I understand it" instead, you'd write, "yo lo comprendo." In everyday conversation, if someone asked me in Spanish if I spoke Spanish, I might say " Si, hablo" (or "Si, yo lo hablo" if I was feeling formal), which means "Yes, I speak it" -- but if I didn't speak so well and only really understood the language when I heard it spoken, to convey that I might answer with "I understand it" instead, and I'd say -- in colloquial semi-slang -- "Si, comprendo." Which actually only says, "Yes, I understand" but conveys the remark "Yes, I understand it" -- the "it" being left off in informal speech sometimes.

If you mean "understand it" as in, in English-colloquial, "get it" then there's a slang you can use that matches the English slang, "I don't get it," which is, "No lo capté" (I cut and pasted that phrase from a website so you could see where the accent mark goes, since my keyboard doesn't make those marks). The infinitive form with the "it" tacked on would be "captarlo," which literally translates to "to get it." If you wanted to change the conjugation to past tense, you'd conjugate differently, as in the phrase, "did you get it?" which would be "lo captaste?" (with the upside question mark before the first word in the sentence). Be warned, however, that -- just like in the English vernacular -- colloquialisms can vary wildly from place to place, and the Spanish speaking world is no exception. Don't use a colloquial or slang phrase like "captarlo" any place or context you wouldn't use "to get it" instead of "to understand it"; don't use them in formal essays or when addressing an authority figure or elder, and I'd be careful about using them anywhere before you know what the common vernacular is, lest you sound like a goober or offend someone.

If you mean to command someone to "Understand it!" as in, "Study until you understand it!" You would say, in command form of the conjugation:

"Comprendelo!" But remember you can only use command form in familiar second person conjugation, and also remember that it can sound rude sometimes (just like in English) so use it wisely.

So, as a recap, here's a couple ways you may be wanting to use the phrase "understand it" (and remember to add the accents over the "u" in "tu" and to put an upside-down question mark at the beginning of a sentence if it's a question and an upside-down exclamation mark at the beginning if there's one at the end):

• "Do you understand it?" --- "Tu lo comprendes?"
• "Do you understand?" --- "Tu comprendes?"
• "I understand it" ---- "Yo lo comprendo"
• "I do not understand" -----"No comprendo"
• "Do you understand it?" (Formal) ---- "él lo comprende?"
• "I do not understand it" --- "No lo comprendo."
• "I need to understand it" --- "Yo necesito comprenderlo."

Of course, if you wanted to change the tense (as in, "I used to understand it" or "Someday I will understand it") that would require different conjugations; for the sake of brevity I won't list all possible conjugations here.

You can also use the verb "entender" instead of "comprender" to say "to understand," and which one you choose to say in informal speech seems to vary based on culture and context. Personally, I use "comprender" to say "to understand," as in, "I understand it"/"Yo lo comprendo." However, if someone said to me, "Yo lo entiendo" ("I understand it"), in the same context where I would've said "Yo lo comprendo," I would fully understand them and it wouldn't seem at all incorrect to me. Some people argue over the etymological roots of both verbs and when one is more fitting to use than the other, but for basic Spanish speaking, you can pretty much use either one to convey "I understand."

Answer 2

entender, or comprender

Answer 3

Ella comprende.

Answer 4

¿Entiendes?

Answer 5

Do you know what am saying